Palo Pinto County wildfire spreads with high winds, evacuations ordered
PALO PINTO CO., Texas - Firefighters are still working to contain a wildfire burning in Palo Pinto County.
The Storage Fire has now burned more than 1,000 acres and forced evacuations in the area about 65 miles west of Fort Worth.
During a 12-hour span from Thursday to Friday, the fire grew from about 600 acres to 1,000 acres. And the containment of the fire has dropped from 40% on Thursday to 30% on Friday.
Palo Pinto County wildfire continues to grow
The Texas A&M Forest Service said the fire has burned about 511 acres and is about 40% contained.
"Containment is kind of out measure of how confident are we that the fire is going to stay where it is," said Adam Turner, with Texas A&M Forest Service.
The Forest Service believes the wildfire is "human caused," but the exact cause is not yet known.
Part of the problem for fire crews has been the windy conditions that cause spotting. That’s where burning embers are blown across containment lines, spreading the fire.
Mandatory evacuations were ordered late Thursday afternoon for three communities south of Possum Kingdom Lake – Sportsman’s World, Hells Gate and Gaines Bend.
About 200 homes in those areas were being threatened by the flames. But for now, there’s been no word of any structures being damaged.
"We’ve had no injuries as well," Turner said.
Firefighters hope to keep it that way.
"With how hot it is, our firefighters have only been able to work for limited amounts of time," he added.
Overnight, crews continued to build containment lines around the blaze with bulldozers.
There are many different fire departments from Palo Pinto County and beyond helping in the effort.
Gov. Greg Abbott has also asked the Department of Emergency Management to send state firefighting resources to the area.
That includes additional air tankers, helicopters, and out-of-state fire crews, bringing the total of deployed firefighters to more than 120.
Some fields, now charred, had flames hovering more than six feet high, according to the Forest Service.
Bulldozers are clearing areas that have not been burned to prevent the fire from spreading.
"All day, [Friday], we’ve put in new dozer lines and have been working to put out any fire, any heat sources that we can find," Turner said.
A pink fire retardant has been dropped from airplanes that’s designed to contain wildfires, keeping it from spreading over to untouched areas.
It’s the beginning of fire season. The Forest Service said people should keep in mind this July 4th weekend that fireworks can easily lead to wildfires.
"Things are starting to dry out," Turner said. "There’s a potential for it."
It’s hoping this year’s damage is minimal.